REI and Nordstrom Rack anchor The Willows Shopping Center, an open-air lifestyle strip in Concord on Oak Grove Road. REI anchors the outdoor and performance retail position; Nordstrom Rack provides the off-price premium fashion tier for a trade area that indexes toward the active outdoor consumer consistent with the Concord and Pleasant Hill residential demographic. Ulta Beauty anchors the beauty and wellness category; Banana Republic and Old Navy serve the accessible premium and value apparel positions. Half Price Books and Barnes and Noble provide the specialty book and media retail positions. Daiso serves the Japanese variety and home goods category. Five Below covers the value specialty tier.
The food and beverage component drives visit frequency: Panera Bread, Crumbl, Krispy Kreme, Pressed Juicery, and Humphry Slocombe cover the quick-service and specialty food categories that sustain repeat neighborhood visits. The combination of outdoor anchors, off-price fashion, specialty food, and lifestyle services creates a visit occasion distinct from the enclosed regional formats in the Concord and Walnut Creek markets.
For brands and operators evaluating the central Contra Costa County lifestyle market, The Willows occupies a neighborhood retail position that complements rather than competes with the enclosed regional scale of Sunvalley to the north and the upscale lifestyle format of Broadway Plaza to the south.
